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Asian Games: Day four of competition

By Duncan Mackay and Nick Butler in IncheonClick refresh for latest updates. All times stated are South Korean

BREAKING NEWS: First positive drugs test of Incheon 2014

Good night!

24:00 A mammoth 39 gold medals will be won tomorrow, with triathlon, tennis and rowing all entering the fray. Apparatus finals in gymnastics and sparring finals in wushu, while cycling, swimming, weightlifting, fencing,, bowling and shooting action all continue. We will back bright and early tomorrow morning, at 09:00 for the best of all the action, hoping for more of the same.

23:58 China are away and gone at the top of the medals table now, it is amazing what a difference two days can make. South Korea still holding off Japan for second place, while Kazakhstan move into fourth. Further down, first gold medals for Thailand and Kuwait, and a first medal of any colour for Pakistan and the Philippines.

23:56 We are going to wrap things up sharpish now so we can get home this evening, we've heard some horror stories about post-midnight buses... But a few moments to reflect on another pulsating day of sport here in Incheon. China leading the way again, with six out of seven available titles in the pool, but South Korea proving at the end there that they are not unbeatable. The squash was another highlight today, with Nicol David of Malaysia and Abdullah Almezayen of Kuwait claiming the two titles.

South Korea win stunning badminton title

23:55 There it is, Lee takes it at last and a stunning, a quite magnificent gold for the host nation at Incheon 2014! They have beaten the Chinese badminton, which is no easy task indeed...almost five and a half hours after action began.

23:53 One is saved, and then another...surely Lee is not going to miss these opportunities.

23:50 Lee has five match points to win it for South Korea!

23:45 This is the polar opposite of what I expected. Gao is huffing and puffing but he just can't quite get close to Lee, who seems that bit more venomous with the smash, and more delicate with the flicks and blocks close to the net. He's now three points ahead...

23:38 Lee leading 13-12 in the second... Every point is being cheered ferociously.

23:30 You always feel Gao is going to come back here, but Lee is playing quite superbly in surely the biggest match of his career. A great advert for the sport, South Korea and the Asian Games right here...

23:18 First blood to South Korea. Lee wins the first set. 21-14. Is his opponent succumbing to the pressure. I didn't think Chinese players felt pressure...

23:08 South Korea Lee Hyunil is up again Gao Huan of China in this decider. The fourth place finisher at London 2012, and runner-up at the Asian Games on home soil way back at Busan 2002, up against the 2013 World Championships bronze medallist. It's the South Korean who holds the lead in the first set...

The winner of this match wins the gold medal for their country. It is as simple as that.

22:52 Cai Yun and Fu Haifeng have done it. What a fightback by the veterans. They wins on the second match point for a 19-21, 21-17, 21-16 win over Kim Sa-rang and Kim Gi-jung.

The Chinese are bringing back their big names to fight their way into this one. Lin Dan, Cai Yun and Fu Haifeng have all barely played in 2014, but, what do they say, form is temporary class is permanent. They are certainly proving that tonight.

22:49 China are edging closer to taking this to a decider. They have opened up a three point gap, no, make that five points, five match points. 20-15 the score.

Pakistan batting their way into a new sport?

22:45 We have written quite a lot already about the countries playing cricket at these Asian Games that you do not normally associate with the sport. So, in a variation on that theme, we are going to tell you about a country you immediately associate with cricket playing baseball.

Pakistan, where passion for cricket is rivalled only by bitter rivals India, are making their debut in baseball here. They even held a first innings lead tonight in their match against baseball superpower Japan before going down 9-1.

But Syed Khawar Shah, secretary general of the Pakistan Baseball Federation, was delighted with his team's performance. "Our team has only played together for one month," he said. "This is my great dream - that my team will play against bigger teams. I hope we will be better in the future."

"We do not have the equipment that Japan and Korea have. We have no single baseball stadium in Pakistan. If we get one stadium, we will be much better."

South Korean chasing gold in badminton

20:38 Back in the badminton, every point is being cheered with a deafening crescendo now in this late night badminton classic. Every time one pair gets ahead, the other fights back. This is sheer brilliant, top level sport. Cai and Fu lead 11-9 in the third over Kim and Kim.

20:34 Speaking of South Korea and China's sporting rivalry, Sun Yang, winner of tonight's 400m freestyle (see 20:29), reducing South Korea's Park Tae-hwan to third in the pool named after him, had taunted his rival in the weeks leading up to these Asian Games.

Depending on how you view them, the videos, sponsored by 361 Degrees, a Chinese sportswear company who are a sponsor of these Games, could range from good-natured ribbing to somewhat cocky trash talk.

That seems like a purposeful balance by the commercial producers, who combine in-your-face dialogues with humorous settings – for example, in one spot, Sun challenges Park to retake an Asian record ("Athlete Park, you set a new record at the last Asian Games, but I already broke the record. So, can you challenge my record at the Incheon Asian Games?" he says) while clip-clopping around the deck in flippers.

In another, Sun teases Park about the arena being named in his honour. "I know the swimming stadium is even named after you...So what?"

Another advert features underwater footage of Sun swimming with a garbled audio track that sounds like Sun is talking underwater. Sun asks Park which of the two swimmers is more handsome before offering a bet - not about good-looks, but about who will perform better in Incheon. "Do you think you're more handsome or I'm more handsome?" Sun says.

20:27 If the oldest adage in sport is never write off the Australians (or the Germans), then don't write off the Chinese is the most appropriate one for the 21st century. Cai and Fu wins four points in a row to take the doubles match into a decider. 1-2 China trail in this team final remember. If they win the final set we are in to a decider...

22:23 Kim and Kim take a 17-16 lead, four points away from a famous gold...

22:20 Just the badminton still going on here in Incheon now. It could be over soon, as South Korea only need to win this game...but that is a big only... Still never more than one point between either side, it seems.

Lost in translation

22:15 Have a bit of sympathy for our Indian media colleagues here trying to interpret what Abhinav Bindra really means when he said today would be his "last" professional competition.

Bindra, the only Indian athlete ever to win an individual Olympic gold medal when he triumphed at Beijing 2008, appeared to have indicated that today's 10m air rifle event would be his final competition by tweeting last night: "Tomorrow will mark the end of my professional shooting life" (see 22:04 on yesterday's blog).

But, after winning two bronze medals in the individual and team competition today (see 12:22), he raised the possibility of continuing to compete in World Cup events and, perhaps, even trying to qualify for Rio 2016.

Understandably, our Indian friends were a tad confused. Bindra, meanwhile, was confused by the fact that they were confused. "The tweet is very easy to understand, I don't know what the confusion is," he told them. "I said that for 20 years I have been a professional shooter living a life where I did nothing but shoot - day in and out training my heart out. But from tomorrow, I am a hobby shooter and will train twice a week, that's it." Clear?

South Korea in action in judo and badminton

22:08 A big moment as China flick wide and South Korea draw first blood in the latest badminton doubles match. The two Kim's winning 21-19. Oh, the fine margins of sport...

South Korea are potentially one game away from gold.

22:04 Japan have won the final judo event of Incheon 2014 by defeating South Korea 4-1 at Dowon Gymnasium. Jung Eun-jung of South Korea started the host nation off well by beating double Asian Games gold medalist Misato Nakamura. Nakamura.

Kim Jan-di of South Korea, however, was defeated for the second time by world seven Anzu Yamamoto on her home ground. Women's under-63kg bronze medalist Kana Abe won against Bak Ji-yun easily with no difficulty. Arai Chizuru had her revenge to Kim Seong-yeon, who had beaten her two days ago in gold medal contest. After Nami Inamori finished the match with her ippon against Lee Jung-eun, Japanese and South Korean women judokas wrapped up the competition by hugging each other.

South Korea do also have the consolation of having won the men's gold earlier...

21:56 On court now in the badminton is the second doubles match. Cai Yun and Fu Haifeng of China versus Kim Sa-rang and Kim Gi-jung. On paper, this should be a Chinese victory. The reigning Olympic champion and four-time world champion. But the Koreans will be no pushovers, having won bronze medals at the 2013 and 2014 World Championships.

It is nip and tuck in the first set at the moment. The Chinese have barely played together this year either...

South Korea claim men's team title in judo

21:50 South Korea's men have won the team title in the judo, crushing Kazakhstan 4-1. The team of Kim Jae-bum, Bang Gui-man, Kim Sung-min, Choi Gwang-hyeon and Lee Kyu-won outclassed their opponents in the Dowon Gymnasium to claim South Korea's fifth gold medal in the judo at these Games.

It also meant that London 2012 Olympic champion Kim Jae-bum, winner of the men's under 81㎏, became the country's first double gold medallist in judo at the Asian Games.Uzbekistan and Japan shared bronze in the team event that is making its debut at these Games and has acted as another showcase for the sport as it seeks its inclusion on the Olympic programme at Tokyo 2020.

21:45 Another huge name in Chinese sport, whose certainly not afraid to speak his mind, is badminton superstar Lin Dan. He has just beaten Lee Dongkeun, 21-18, 21-15, in the third match of the team competition. The Chinese are up and running against South Korea, but still trailing 1-2 in the best of five format.

After writing so much, some here but particularly at last month's Summer Youth Olympic Games in Nanjing, about how sport is helping China and Japan heal their fractious political relations, Sun has taken a bit of a pot shot tonight.

There is a long history of trash-talking in swimming however...The most famous example being Gary Hall Jr's declaration that his US team would "smash Australia like guitars" ahead of their 4x100m freestyle relay clash at Sydney 2000. Australia, famously, won gold ahead of the US.

20:40 Here is a Chinese competitor back on top of the pile. Sun Yang celebrating his 400m freestyle victory, one of five Chinese titles in the pool this evening.

21:38 Yes, China do, very occasionally, only take a silver medal. This is the scene in the women's sabre fencing medals presentation. The only South Korean final victory over China for two days. The badminton team may be about the change that...

"I would like to highlight and congratulate the Incheon Organising Committee," he said. "Until now, I've seen a great Opening Ceremony, great venues, and well-organised Games. I hope this will continue until the end of the Games, like we saw in the 2002 Busan Asian Games."

Sheikh Saoud, though, will be hoping that his team get on the medals board soon as so far they have yet to trouble the scorers. At Guangzhou four years ago they won a total of 16 medals, including four gold. Qatar's best Asian Games performance came, not surprisingly, when they hosted the event in Doha. Then they won 32 medals, nine of them gold.

Judo team finals

21:27 The first of two team finals in judo is underway this evening. South Korea against surprise finalists Kazakhstan on the men's side. Matches take place simultaneous in the team format, with the usual seven weight categories squished into five. That doesn't really help Kazakhstan as the category of their only gold medal winner, Yeldos Smetov's under 60kg division isn't there...

Chinese domination in, well, everything...except maybe in badminton

"I thought to myself, 'I will succeed even if I break my arm" - Chinese weightlifter Lyu Xiaojun after winning the 77kg to complete the grand slam of Olympic, world and Asian Games titles. They're a tough lot these weightlifters...

21:20 No miraculous North Korean magnificence in the clean and jerk tonight. Lyu Xiaojun of China holds on to win the under 77kg weightlifting event, with a combined total of 375kg. In second place was Kim Kwangsong of North Korea. Chatuphum Chinnawong of Thailand was third. Rejepbay Rejepov of Turkmenistan was fourth.

21:16 Yao Jinnan did wins the women's gymnastics all around event earlier. In a Chinese 1-2 as well, with Shang Chunsong. Yun Narae of South Korea takes the bronze.

21:14 We will be focusing on judo, as well as badminton, from here on in. But a couple of other results to bring you first.

21:09 In the badminton, meanwhile, it is 2-0 to South Korea in the team final! Yoo Yeon-seong and Lee Yong-dae winning 23-21, 21-13 over Xu Chen and Zhang Nan. But I still would not write China off. Double Olympic champion Dan Lin has won the first set 21-18 against world number 34, Lee Dongkeun.

That said, I wouldn't read too much into rankings. Dan is ranked 15th even though he is a five-time world singles champion. A few injuries mean he has competed more sparsely recently. On his day though, he is still considered the best in the business.

21:01 China looking good for more gold tonight. In weightlifting, Lyu Xiaojun has snatches an Asian Games record 175kg. She's 7kg ahead of Kim Kwangsong of North Korea as the Chinese and North Korean rivalry in the sport continues.

Deep into the clean and jerk in that under 77kg event, so we will bring you the final result in a moment.

Double for South Korea in fencing and six out of seven for China in the pool!

20:52 A final gold medal to bring you in the pool. One guess as to who won it. Yes, China! Guo Junjun, Tang Yi, Cao Yue and Shen Duo dominating the 4x200m relay final. They stop the clock at 7:55.17 so over three seconds ahead of second placed Japan, and even further clear of bronze medal winners Hong Kong.

China are the world record holders in that event. Remarkably, tonight's time was 13 seconds outside the record mark, set in 2009 back in the era of ultra-fast non-textile suits...

20:44 There is so much going on this evening, it is hard to keep track of it all. Semi-finals in the wushu and the badminton team final that we will return to in a moment, but it's also the women's all around gymnastics final, an event we haven't been particularly great at keeping you up to date on so far...

Yao Jinnan of China is our leader after some huge scores so far. Top scoring on the vault with 14.550 and the uneven bars, with 15.450.

20:37 Another gold medal for South Korea tonight in fencing. After a blip last night, it has been business as usual today, a 25-21 final victory over Japan for Park Sangyoung, Jung Jinsun, Park Kyoungdoo and Kweon Youngjun in the men's epee.

Bronze medals go to Vietnam and Kazakhstan.

Sun Yang wins fifth Chinese swimming gold of day four

20:29 Sun Yang wins the men's 400m freestyle! Too good from the world and Olympic champion, who never looked back after taking the lead before halfway and taking victory in 3:43.23.

Kosuke Hagino takes his fifth medal of the Games, with silver, and bronze goes to Park Tae-hwan, to the disappointment of the home crowd again.

20:27 But Sun has taken the lead for China! Park is up to second, by the narrowest of margins, with Hagino third. Still 150m to go.

20:25 We are underway in the 400m freestyle final and our leader after 100m is Hagino, bidding for a fourth gold of the Games. But his two big rivals are right there with him.

20:22 Up next it is the big one, the men's 400m freestyle! Sun Yang of China, Kosuke Hagino of Japan, and Park Tae-hwan of South Korea are all back after their thrilling duel over 200m on Sunday (September 21). Sun, the current Asian record holder, did not participate in the men's 4×200m relay last night, due to injury on his thumb. However, it seemed as if he had recovered when he aced the heats with 3:51.17.

Hagino, who swam in the second heat, led the race from start to finish, hitting the wall in 3:52.24. "I took it easy, since it's the prelims. At finals, I will race at my own pace. To be able to race with China and South Korea's biggest swim stars is something to be proud of for me," he said.

Park, who swam in the third heat, finished second after Sun in 3:53.80. "Whatever happens, it is important that I do my best," he said as he left the mixed zone and headed to the pool for a warm down. Meanwhile, Hao Yun of China, Kohei Yamamoto of Japan, Kevin Yeap and Lee Vernon of Malaysia, and Yeo Kai Quan of Singapore also made it to the final.

20:19 Back in the pool, and another Chinese gold. Chen Xinyi wins the 100m butterfly in an Asian Games record 56.61. Lu Ying takes silver in a Chinese 1-2.And Tao Li of Singapore takes the bronze.

South Korea back on track with wins over China in fencing and, maybe, badminton?

"In the first set, I adapted to the wind in the gymnasium well so I took the first set easily. And the third was the same. But in second set, I played against an unfavorable wind direction, so I lost the second set. And I had reviewed his play many times, so I already knew about his playing style. Today, my mandatory military service ended. But I wanted to give them one last present." - Ending your military service and beating a Chinese badminton star. Not a bad day in the office for Son Wan-ho.

20:13 It will be an amazing achievement if South Korea win the badminton, however. Even from 1-0 up. They still need to manufacture two wins from somewhere. And Dan Lin, the two-time Olympic champion is standing in their way.

But South Korea have now put out the world number one ranked men's doubles pair Yoo Yeon-seong and Lee Yong-dae, up against Xu Chen and Zhang Nan, who are each mixed doubles specialists really. If China win this one, I'd definitely back them to take gold, but if South Korea take it...

20:05 And another win for South Korea over Chinese opponents. They have won the first fencing team gold of the evening, 45-41 in the women's sabre event. Kim JiyeonLee Rajin, Hwang Seona and Yoon Jisu the victorious quartet. Hong Kong and Kazakhstan take the two bronze medals.

The men's epee final is starting soon. South Korea are in it again, but up against Japan this time.

19:56 One gold medal match tonight that won't be finished for a while is the men's badminton team event. Like last night, it's South Korea v Japan. But, is a shock on the cards. In a gruelling 79 minute epic, world number two Chen Long, a bronze medal winner at London 2012, has lost out 5-21, 24-22, 14-21 to a rampant Son Wan-ho, the world number seven.

Even when losing you have to hand it to China though. Chen got clobbered in the first game, but fought back and won such a narrow second even when he was getting outplayed. But a fantastic performance by Son, fighting back again in the third.

19:48 this one was certainly not expected, as Dmitriy Balandin of Kazakhstan wins the 200m breaststroke in 2:07.67. Kazuki Kohinata and Yasuhiro Koseki are a distant second and third for Japan. Okay, that's two medals for the Japanese, but what has happened to the utter domination we saw earlier?

19:40 One of the more predictable swimming results to bring you now, as world record holder and Olympic champion Ye Shiwen wins the 400m individual medley. It's three out of three for China tonight. Over five and a half seconds behind, Sakiko Shimizu takes silver while Thi Anh Vien Nguyen of Vietnam earns bronzeChina set up final with Kazakhstan in men's team tennis

19:32 A result from earlier to bring you in tennis as well. And we're see-sawing on the blog as this one is bad news for Japan. China have beaten them 2-1 in the men's tennis team event at the Yeorumul Tennis Court. Chinese athletes took the first singles match 6-4, 4-6, 4-6 and second singles match 6-4, 5-7, 6-1 and doubles match was 2-6, 7-6, 6-2.

"So proud for our country. China has not advanced into the final in a long time. The Japanese guys played very well in the beginning of the match; we recovered during the game, so it was a really tough match. We just trusted each other at the moment, I mean the teamwork. We played Kazakhstan about three years ago and lost a close match at that time, but now we are different so I think we will win tomorrow. We have confidence to win tomorrow." - World number 398 Li Zhe reflects on the semi-finals, and looks ahead to tomorrow's final against Kazakhstan.

It's China v Taiwan in the women's final.

Japan claim men's team gymnastics title

19:24 A blow for Japan there. But here's some news to cheer up the Japanese team: gold from a little earlier to report, in gymnastics. A one-two finish in fact, as Yuya Kamoto is awarded the overall title after overcoming compatriot Masayoshi Yamamoto. Lee Sang-wook of South Korea took bronze.

Quite a few names missing from that competition, including the reigning Olympic and four-time world champion, Kōhei Uchimura, who would only have made the Japanese team even more formidable.

The women's final is also underway.

First two swimming golds go to China

19:16 Ning Zetao wins the 50m freestyle! For the first time Japan have lost a male event here in Incheon in the pool. A stunning performance by Ning, with a time of 21.95 to set a new Asian Games record and pip Asian record holder Shinri Shioura, who clocks 22.11. Kenta Ito is third in 22.16.

19:13 This next final promises to be a corker. Shinri Shioura of Japan set an Asian record earlier this year, of 21.88. But in this event, anything can happen, and there's a few others in the field who will fancy their chances.

19:08 Business as usual as Yuanhui Fu of China takes the honours in the women's 50m backstroke with winning time of 27.66. Yekaterina Rudenko of Kazakhstan took silver in 28.04, while Miyuki Takemura of Japan clocked 28.27 for bronze.

19:03 Right, the evening action is well and truly beginning now with the first final in the pool. It's the women's 50m backstroke up first. For any Thai readers, here is your national flag being worn, twice, after that double podium finish in the bowling...

Japanese cyclist pips South Korean to cycling gold

18:58 That means the overall crown also goes to Eiya Hashimoto of Japan, with Cho Ho-sung of South Korea taking silver and Cheung King Lok of Hong Kong the bronze. Another blow for South Korea, with Cho the overall leader going into the points race but only managing a measly 38 points in it.

18:53 The men's points race, the final event in the omnium competition in track cycling, is over, with Eiya Hashimoto of Japan taking the event with 94 points from Yousif Mohamed Ahmed Alhammadi of Qatar's 85 points. He got 20 points on three occasions, and a further 34 from the various intermediate sprints.

Sri Lanka ooze class in cricket over Hong Kong

18:46 Speaking of tea, and there is a result to bring you earlier from cricket, surely the only sport where tea-breaks are incorporated into a match. A win, as expected, for Sri Lanka over Hong Kong (see 16.21) by 82 runs in the end. The Sri Lankan total of 149 was always going to be too much, and Hong Kong were promptly skittled for 67 in 17.2 overs.

"I'm disappointed that we couldn't get into the semi-final but Sri Lanka is a test playing country," said Hong Kong captain Ishitaa Gidwani.

"Fielding let us down today. We had a good start with the bat and looking at the score, I think this is the highest score we have made against a test playing country. There are few positives that can take out of this game. But it is disappointing that we lost."

18:39 The usual evening medals match is about to begin here in Incheon. So we have just had a brief coffee break to refuel. We're getting very friendly with the coffee staff here at the Media Centre, and, although it was not actually on their menu, I was delighted to find they serve English Breakfast tea. Admittedly, they weren't quite sure of the rigours of milk and tea bags, but I soon taught them. Cultural interaction going on here at the Asian Games. And, as you can see, we are really pushing the boat out when it comes to sampling local cuisine...

Thailand skittle the opposition to win first gold medal of Games

18:25 Thailand's Yannaphon Larpapharat has claimed the first bowling gold medal at Incheon 2014 with victory in the men's singles. He scored 1,319 points at Ho-Gye Stadium today. Du Jianchao of China with 1,300 won silver and Sithiphol Kunaksorn, also of Thailand, with 1,290 took bronze. That was Thailand's first gold medal of these Games.

18: 17 The Olympic Council of Malaysia are revelling in winning gold and silver in the women's squash...and who can blame them?

More world records in weightlifting

18:05 We are also receiving reports of a number of more world records at the Moonlight Festival Garden Weightlifting, this time in the women's 63kg.

First, Lin Tzu Chi of Chinese Taipei broke world records in the clean and jerk and the total weight to win gold. She hoisted 145㎏ for the clean and jerk record and had a total of 261㎏four kilograms above the previous record. She broke the total world record twice, first reaching 257㎏ and then bettering it by two kilograms.

But she was made to fight for her victory as in the clean and jerk, China's Deng Wei first set a world record with 144㎏, a kilogram heavier than the previous record, only for Lin up to erase her from the record books with her successful attempt of 145㎏.

Deng ended up with the silver medal with a 259㎏ total, while Jo Pok-hyang of North Korea finished third with 247㎏, giving the country its fifth weightlifting medal in Incheon.

So far at these Games, eight new world records have been set, seven of them in weightlifting.

17:54 The final of thewomen's judo team event will feature the continent's powerhouses, Japan and South Korea. South Korea beat Mongolia in the semi-final, while Japan beat Kazakhstan.

Tajikistan footballer at centre of doping controvery

17:50 Tajikistan's first match of the football was against Singapore, which they won 1-0 at the Ansan Wa Stadium thanks to a header from substitute Umedzhon Sharipov in the 87th minute. Since then, they have been beaten 2-1 by Palestine and beaten Oman 1-0. It left them second in Group C behind Palestine and means they will take on Iraq in the Round of 16 on Friday (September 26).

17:45 An unnamed Tajikistan footballer has failed a doping test and is set to be disqualified from the Asian Games, it has been reported. Chinese news agency Xinhua is reporting that a source close to the Olympic Council of Asia has told them that the player tested positive on September 14, the day the football tournament started, five days before the Opening Ceremony. We will bring you more news of this as soon as we get it. Strewth mate! We love Australia, but stay out of the Asian Games

"I'm no xenophobe, quite the opposite," he wrote. "But a line has to be drawn somewhere. The argument for including Oceania is that it will help raise sporting standards in that region as, apart from Australia, none of the other countries is by any means world-class...What about the rest of us? Will Hong Kong be happy to see Australian or Fiji athletes steal the glory in rugby sevens or will Mongolia be happy to see a boxing gold go Down Under or to a Tongan warrior?Competition is good, but then we might as well invite the United States to send a delegation."

Sallay claims that the OCA should look at what has happened in football. "Australia's presence in Asia is already hurting the region in soccer," he wrote. Since 2006, Australia has been part of the Asian Football Confederation and now qualify for the World Cup through Asia. At the last two World Cups in South Africa and Brazil this summer, Australia have taken the place of an Asian country."17:25 In the judo, South Korea will take on Kazakhstan in the final of the men's team. Kazakhstan beat Uzbekistan 3-2 in the semi-final, but South Korea will surely start as favourites after thrashing Mongolia 5-0 to reach the final. The final is due to start at 21:00.

FIVB President claims nothing he can do to get Iranian volleyball ban on women lifted

17:10 You may remember that yesterday that we brought you news of Iranian athletes Najmeh Khedmati and Narjes Andevari Emamgholinejad finishing first and second in the 10m air rifle competiton (see 13:27 on yesterday's blog), a fantastic result for women's sport in the country. But today we bring less happy news about the fact that women are currently banned from attending volleyball matches in the country, a situation which has led to Iranian-British citizen Ghoncheh Ghavami having been arrested and detained for watching Iran play Italy in an FIVB World League match in Tehran on June 20.

Our reporter, Paul Osborne, has spoken to FIVB President Dr Ary S Graça during the recently-concluded men's World Volleyball Championships in Poland but he claimed there is nothing he can directly do about the situation involving Ghavami or getting the ban on women lifted. "I'm not ready to go against the culture of the people, the religion - No, no, no," he told Osborne. Read the full exclusive story here.

Tennis semi-finals and weightlifting medals action

16:50 A couple of tennis results from the team semi-finals taking place today. China were very comfortable 3-0 winners over Japan and will move through to face Taiwan in the women's final after the Taiwanese defeated Kazakhstan.

Kazakhstan have enjoyed more success, however, in the men's event, with their squad seeing of Uzbekistan in the narrowest of semi-finals. After singles matches were traded, it all came down to the doubles. Andrey Golubev and Aleksandr Nedovyesov against Farrukh Dustov and Uzbek number one Denis Istomin. In one hour and 53 minutes, the Kazakhs won 6-7, 7-5, 6-4.

They will face either Japan or China in the final, with that match also locked 1-1 at the moment and down to the doubles.

16:44 This South Korean fan is not at the cycling, but the weightlifting, where the snatch part of the women's under 63kg competition. She will be cheering Kim Sookyung, the runner-up four years ago in Guangzhou. She has two lifts to come, but Lin Tzu Chi of Taiwan has just pulled off an Asian Games record 140kg.

South Korean leading omnium

16:39 South Korea's Cho Ho-sung is in first place in the men's omnium heading into the final round of the men's omnium at the Incheon International Velodrome. It is the only event reaching a conclusion today on the track.

With just the points race to come, Cho is 12 points clear of Kazakhstan's Artyom Zakharov following the flying lap race in which Cho was the only rider to go sub 18 seconds, recording 17.960.

Clean sweep for China in synchronised swimming

16:30 It hasn't taken long for China to win another gold. It's come in the synchronised swimming free combination discipline. They score 94.9667 to push Japan into second place and Kazakhstan into third.

Sun Wenyan, who won duet and team titles earlier in the Games, takes a third gold medal. She is the second most successful athlete in Incheon so far behind Japanese swimmer Kosuke Hagino, who claimed 100m backstroke bronze alongside 200m freestyle, 200m individual medley and 4x200m freestyle relay victories.

Sri Lankan showing their cricketing class

16:21 Sri Lanka have entered the stage in the women's cricket competition this afternoon and the experience of a more established nation in the sport has already made a different. They manage 149-5 in their 20 overs. A huge score in the context of these Games. Lasanthi Heenatigala Meadinage with 43 off 46 balls. A tough, tough ask for Hong Kong to get close to that total.

China remember are already through to the semi-finals after getting the better of Japan by seven wickets earlier (see 12:32).

South Korean success on day four... (on) finally

16:13 A score of 77.225 when his technical and freestyle results are combined, Kim, who is only ranked 156th in the world, has already won three Asian Games team titles, in 2006, 2010 and earlier in the week here. His horse is called Finally.

And despite, finally winning gold today, South Korea need a few more if they are to hold off Japan when the inevitable swimming medals rush begins.

16:05 A sudden rush of gold medals as Hwang Youngshik wins the first gold of day four for the host nation in the dressage. Three different medallists from the leaders we mentioned at 14:46. Kim Dongseon is second and Larasati Iris Rischka Gadung of Indonesia is third.

Two more Chinese titles

15:55 And another Chinese gold as, for the second day in succession, they sweep the titles in wushu. Chen Zhouli holds on to claim the men's taijiquan and taijijian all around title from Daniel Parantac of the Philippines and Thanh Tung Nguyen of Vietnam.

15:46 Back to today's action and another Chinese shooting gold to report. Zhu Jingyu has beaten Yukie Nakayama of Japan in the women's trap final, but in the tightest of fashions. After a 12-12 tie, she wins it in the second sudden death round.

Chattaya Kitcharoen of Thailand beats Anastassiya Davydova of Kazakhstan to the bronze.

Typhoon stops play?

15:36 Slightly ominously, Incheon 2014 have released a list of back-up plans in case of rain tomorrow. There is a possibility of a thunderstorm, or as the Organising Committee have referred to it in even more ominous fashion, a "typhoon". Here's what will happen: cricket, you shall see, could come down to a coin toss...

Archery: - The event will stop for a moment when targets can't be seen or the target falls due to heavy rain or strong wind.- The event will continue as the weather gets better and the day's event should be completed before the sunset.

Baseball: - If the event is canceled, it will be postponed according to back-up and resting schedules.- If the event is canceled on 24th, the event will be held on 26th, the rest day.

Cricket- If the event is canceled, ranking will be determined according to the ICC regulations (coin toss).- In case of rain in the morning, the event will be determined by coin toss. If the rains stops at 14:00, the event begins at 15:00 after organising the ground.

Cycling (track)- In case of rain, the event will continue after 2 hours.(Continue the event as much as possible)- Original time: 16:00-18:52 / Postponed time: 18:00-20:52

Equestrian- If it drizzle, the event will proceed according to its schedule.- In case of lighting or heavy rain, the event will be stoped or restart after postponed for a while.- Check the live weather forecast and TD will manage the schedule for the event.

Hockey- All events will proceed in case of rain.- The event will stop for a while and restart only in case of thundering and lightning.

Rowing- All events will proceed in case of rain.

Sailing- All events will proceed even if it rains, but it can also be canceled or postponed in case of strong wind or high waves on the day.- The event is allowed to continue according to the back-up schedule.

Shooting (shotgun)- All events will proceed in case of typhoon.- In case of rain, preparation of the athletes' lounge and tents are completed.

Tennis- In case of rain in the morning, the event will be determined to be held or not at 2 hours intervals from 10:30 am, the original starting time.e.g. 12:00, 14:00, 16:00, 18:00, final determination after 19:00- In case of not capable of holing the event, postpone to next day- Proceed as indoor games in case of rain for 2 days

Beach Volleyball- All events will happen in case of rain.- In case of strong wind, TD will judge to discontinue the event or postpone to next day.

Gymnastics and shooting action

15:20 Medals action going on all over the place now. A good start for the Japanese in gymnastics. Masayoshi Yamamoto posts the highest pommel horse score and Yuya Kamoto the best on the floor. They first and second respectively in the all around competition at the moment.

15:12 Zhu Jingyu of China will face Yukie Nakayama of Japan in the women's trap final. Chattaya Kitcharoen of Thailand will shoot off against Anastassiya Davydova of Kazakhstan for bronze. A slight disappointment there for the Kazakh team considering how successful they were in qualification.

Kuwait take shock gold in men's singles squash!

15:00 He's done it! Abdullah Almezayen of Kuwait wins the decider 11-9 to take a shock victory over Sourav Ghousal of India! He was 2-0 but never gave up, dug deep, and made squash history. Kuwait have never won even a minor medal in the sport at the Asian Games. Until now.

14:52 The Kuwaiti, ranked 46th to his Indian opponents 16th, is playing magnificently here. The highlight of the 26-year-old's 12 year career so far, he says, was winning the GCC Gulf Championships. That could be about to change. He is leading in the fifth...

14:48 And we are into a fifth rubber in the squash! Abdullah Almezayen of Kuwait has leveled things up, 11-8 against Sourav Ghousal of India. Into the decider we go...

14:46 There's Chinese success pretty much everywhere at these Asian Games, and we can now add dressage to that list. Huang Zhuoqin, riding Uris, is in the overall lead after his freestyle ride followed his technical one on Saturday (September 20). His score is 72.100.

Yeh Hsiu Hua, on Urban Legend, is currently second on 71.975, but some other contenders are still to come.

14:37 Afternoon medals action elsewhere, meanwhile, is getting going in earnest. The men's bowling competition is just beginning, while we are already well into the concluding taijiquan section in men's wushu, with Chen Zhouli of China the current leader. Women's trap shooting and dressage action are also ongoing, with the final synchronised swimming event of the Games, the free combination team event, beginning in a few minutes time.

14:31 Things are getting interesting in the squash, as Abdullah Kh Kh H M Almezayen of Kuwait wins a nail-biting third game over Saurav Ghosal, 14-12 in a 19 minute epic. He now trails the Indian 2-1 in the best of five game contest.

"The egg can break the stone". North Korean weightlifters reflect on gold

14:25 Both North Koreans also spoke the press earlier...

"I have engaged in weightlifting since a young age for about 10 years now. In the past, not only for the 17th Asian Games, I have had some trouble and discomfort with my waist, but thanks to the warm care of the respected Marshall Kim Jong-un, I did not have any trouble in getting treatment. He has given me the opportunity to perform. What we want is to deliver the pleasure and happiness to our people, especially to our Marshall Kim Jong-un. I will do my best to continue to deliver and do my best for our people." - Kim Un-guk, the under 69kg champion, also said there were no problems competing in South Korea and that he would stay on here to cheer on his team mates, while continuing to train, of course.

"Concerning the cost to be the champion I would like to give everyone one question, 'Have you ever heard the saying, 'The egg can break the stone?'' Marshall Kim Jong-un told us that if we insert an idea into the egg, that egg can break a stone. That is the mentality I have for my weightlifting." - Om Yun-chol, under 56kg champion, also praises the North Korean leader, as he explains his weightlifting philosophy...

14:17 Speaking of North Korea, Om Yun-chol and Kim Unguk were presented with special edition Tissot watches this morning, along with the other world record breaking weightlifting champion Hsu Shu-ching of Taiwan, following their golden exploits.

Tactical withdrawal from North Korean gymnast?

14:10 The start list for artistic gymnastics women's individual all-around finals was released this morning, revealing that North Korea's Hong Un-jong will not participate in the event. In the qualification round on the previous day, Hong obtained the ticket to the individual all-around finals by placing sixth out of 59 players, with a score of 53.750 points.

It is likely that Hong's withdrawal is a strategic move in preparation for the women's vault final event scheduled on Sept. 24, where she is a strong favorite for the gold medal. A 2008 Beijing gold medalist, Hong is the only Asian woman to have ranked first in vault in the Olympics. A potential rival for Hong in Wednesday's vault finals is Oksana Chusovitina from Uzbekistan, who won the silver medal next to Hong at the Beijing Olympics.

With Hong out, Kim Un-hyang will be the sole North Korean gymnast to compete for the medals in women's individual all-around event, to be held from 18:00 tonight at the Namdong Gymnasium.

India heading for squash title

14:03 Back in the squash and things are going extremely well for Saurav Ghosal in the men's singles final. He moves 2-0 up on Almeza Kh Kh H M Almezayen of Kuwait after taking the opening two games, 12-10, 11-2. One more will win it.

Kazakhstan take shooting gold

13:55 China's run of shooting titles today has ended, as Kazakhstan win the team trap title. Oxana Sereda is the third member of the team, alongside Mariya Dmitriyenko and Anastassiya Davydova, as they score an impressive 203 points, to finish four clear of runners-up China.

North Korea are a further point behind in third.

13:46 Kazakhstan's Mariya Dmitriyenko and Anastassiya Davydova, China's Jingyu Zhu, Japan's Yukie Nakayama, North Korea's Chae Hye-gyong and Thailand's Chattaya Kitcharoen have advanced to the final round at the Gyeonggido Shooting Range in the women's trap competition. A result to bring you from the team competition, however...

"I don't have any rival. Actually shooting is not only my work but also my hobby, so I enjoy it a lot. I think it's great that I could do my work by enjoying myself. I also don't have any special goal for world-class events. I didn't pay attention to the result. I just thought of shots one by one to concentrate on the game." - A star of day four so far, 18-year-old Yang Haoran, speaks after completing a golden hatrick in the last month of Youth Olympic, World Championship and Asian Games titles in the 10m air rifle shooting.

All-Malaysian squash final, and archery action on day four

13:38 The men's squash final, between Saurav Ghosal of India and Almeza Kh Kh H M Almezayen of Kuwait, is just about to begin. It is the world number 16 against the man ranked world number 46 here, so it should be fairly one-sided in the Indians favour, but you never know...

"It's great. I still can't believe it, because it was a long match, it was a good one as well playing with your team mate, and you just feel like it's just gonna keep going for a longer time, so I'm really pleased to win. Also to have a gold and silver medal for Malaysia; it's a great match and a great event for Malaysia, so far... - Nicol David following her fourth Asian Games squash title.

13:26 And there it is. Gold for Nicol David of Malaysia. The world number one wins the final game, 12-10 over team mate Low Wee Wern for a 3-1 victory.

Considered possibly the greatest female player of all time, David has just won a fourth Asian Games singles title, to add to her 1998, 2006 and 2010 triumphs, and a 2002 silver. She also won the team gold for years ago in Guangzhou on the first occasion the team competition was held. The 31-year-old has also won seven World Open titles, and earlier this summer, took gold at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.

Dipika Rebecca Pallikal of India and Annie Au Wing Chi of Hong Kong took the two bronze medals by virtue of losing their semi-finals yesterday. Not sure really why a bronze medal match was not required here...

13:19 We'll return to the archery to update you on qualification in the Olympic recurve division later, but for now we are focusing on the squash. Nicol David wins the third game 11-5 and we are now at the business end of a tighter fourth. Her fellow Malaysian and opponent, Low Wee Wern, has to win this fourth game to stay in this final.

Each game in the best of five set match is first to 11, but the winner has to be two clear points ahead. A point can only be scored by the serving player, with the server relinquishing the service whenever they lose a rally.

13:10 Qualification is also over in the compound archery. Esmaeil Ebadi of Iran leads the way

with a superb score of 710 from his 72 arrows, with a staggering 63 scoring 10 out of 10. See what I mean about the compound being very high scoring (see 09:53). That is only five

Timeline

About the author

Since joining insidethegames.biz in 2013, Butler has travelled to a variety of major global sporting events, including the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics and the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games as well as the most recent editions of the Asian, European and Pan American Games in Incheon, Baku and Toronto. He has also attended the last four International Olympic Committee (IOC) Sessions and has particularly enjoyed tackling the politics and diplomacy of the Olympic Movement.

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Fact of the day

At the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Iranian judoka Arash Miresmaeili was disqualified for weighing in at nearly four pounds above the limit for his weight class of his under-66 kilograms match against an Israeli opponent Ehud Vaks in the first round. It was claimed Miresmaeili had gone on an eating binge to protest the International Olympic Committee's recognition of the state of Israel. Iran does not recognise the state of Israel, and Miresmaeili's actions won praise from high-ranking Iranian officials. Mohammad Khatami, the country's President at the time, was quoted as saying Miresmaili's actions would be "recorded in the history of Iranian glories". He was later awarded $125,000 by the Government - the same amount given to Olympic gold medallists.

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